Comments

Good to see Shakur Stevenson staying busy, I think he is doing great, has started as a professional brilliantly, he always seems fast, sharp, accurate, he's learning quickly, he is young, not ready for a world title fight or anything like that yet, but it is looking up for Stevenson at the minute. At this stage, it is probably best for Stevenson to keep active, and I would say an 8 rounder against against a half-decent opponent, on a Terence Crawford undercard, probably the best way to stay busy, boxing on a Crawford bill, for any young fighter, it is great for their reputation, gives fans a chance to follow more of their careers.

I think for Stevenson, taking on Mesquita, is a good balance between not wasting time fighting poor opponents, but at the same time, not rushing it. Mesquita is 16-1, he is 26, and he has stopped 14, so he wins most of the time, is young, and is a puncher, this might be a bit of a step up, little bit of a test for Stevenson, which is good for his experience, but Mesquita, well beaten in his last fight, when he stepped up to Asia Pacific title level, and he lost every round, stopped in 5, all his wins are Brazilian title level wins and lower, so this isn't a real risky fight, a step too far, too soon, not a fight which Stevenson is likely to lose or even seriously struggle to win.

Mesquita can punch, but he doesn't come through getting punched himself so well, he has been dropped 5 times in his last two fights, I think Stevenson can definitely hurt Mesquita. I think Stevenson will stop Mesquita, maybe in 3 rounds, I think Mesquita will have a little bit of success early, but I think Stevenson can punish him for taking chances, without making too many mistakes even at his early career stage, and Stevenson can inflcit some real damage on Mesquita, I definitely don't think this is going the full 8.